Safety envelope



May 28, 19,29. A.szARKA ETAL 1.715.177

SAFETY ENVELOPE Filednec. 8, 1925l www* www Mm Patented May 2K8, 1929.

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ALEXANDER SZARKA, F ROEBLNG, NEW JERSEY, AND ALEXANDER PALFY, 0F i BUDAPEST,

HUNGARY.

' Vpplication iled.` December This invention relates generally to envelopes and more particularly to means for securely sealing envelopes and to means for detecting tampering with sealed envelopes.

An object of the invention is to provide an envelope that may be readily sealed to safely hold the contents thereof.

Another object of the invention is to .pro-l Figure 1 is a rear View of an envelope ern-- bodying the present invention, the top Hap of the envelope being in open position.

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1 but with the top flap in closed position.

Figure 3 is a rear View showing the improved sealing device about to be placed in effective position.

Figure 4 is a rear view of the improved envelope in sealed position with the improved detecting device applied thereto.

Figure 5 is a rear view of a modification of the improved envelope.

With particular reference to the drawing, the improved envelope consists of a rectangular front portion 10, top flap 11, side flaps 12, and bottom flap 13, said iaps 11, 12 and 13 comprising the rear portion of the envelope when completed. Formed in the top flap 11 and disposed centrally thereof is a slot 14, and formed in the bottom flap 13 and diaposed centrally thereof is a slot 15. Formed in the side flaps 12 and disposed substantially centrally thereof are slots 16. j

Arranged parallel with the top and bottom flaps 13 and 13, respectively, is a narrow split ring portion 17, preferably made of the same material as the envelope, said ring portion passing through the slots 16 to the interior of the envelope and having its edges 18 glued or otherwise secured to the inside surface of the side flaps 12. This ring portion 17 reinforces the envelope and conceals the points where the edges of the side and bottom flaps meet thereby adding to the attractiveness of the envelope.

Disposed at right angles to the ring portion 17 is a narrow elongated sealing strip 19, tera-ainsi 2Q thsree being giusti uttern e,- 1925. Serial No. 73,979.

Vwise secured to the inside surface of the side and bottom iiaps, the strip 19 passing through the slot to the exterior of the envelope.

This strip 19 is creased at the points 21, 22 v and 23 and be pointed at its Vother ter-` minal V24. The inside surface of the portion of the strip 19 between the creases 21 and 22 and the inside surface of the portion 26 of the strip between the creases 22 and 23 are glued for a purpose which will be eX- plained.

1n order to seal the envelope, the top fla-p 11 is folded over the side fiaps 12 and secured on them in the usual manner, its point being tucked underneath the ring 17 The terminal 24 is grasped and the portions 26 and 27 are folded over eachother so that the terminal 24 is adjacent the crease 22. llhe crease 23 is then forced through the slot 14 as shown in Figure 3 carrying the portions 26 and 27 of the strip 19 with it to the interior of the envelope, the inward movement of said portions being stopped by the crease 22 engaging the slot 14. When in such effective position, the glued surface of the portion 26 will rest against the interior surface of the top iiap 11 and side flaps 12, and the glued surface of the portion 25 will rest'against the exterior surface of the bottom flap 13, of the ring 17 where it crosses the same and the exterior surface of the top iap 11, and said glued surfaces being previously moistened, pressure exerted across the strip 19 will securely seal the parts of the evelope together thus holding the contents safely therein. 1f a slight portion of the terminal 24 of the strip 19 protrudes after the envelope is sealed, such protruding portion may be cut offat the slot 14 so that no protruding edges remain.

In order to discover any tampering with y the envelope after it is sealed, any mark or indicia may be stamped over the strip 19, ring 17, top, bottom and side flaps, said stamp comprising lines crossing uniformly over the various parts; 1n Figure 4 is illustrated a stamp in the form of a double circle 28, with its lines crossing all of the aforesaid parts of the envelope, and any tampering with the envelope would destroy the uniformity of said lines.

In the modification illustrated in Figure 5, there is a slot 29 formed in the bottom iiap 13 adjacent its upper edge, and another slot 30 formed in said bottom iiap 13 a'cent its lewe? edge in aliginnent with. the 29.

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strip 31, which may be made rounded asl shown in Fig `5, for the sake of attractive appearance.

`W e claim:

1. In an envelopehaving a back, side iiaps andltop and bottom flaps, a slot in each, a securing strip pasted tothe inside ofthe bottom and side laps at their meeting points in about the center of the formed envelope and passing through the said slot in the hottoin'lap tothe outside, said projecting free portion of said securing strip being creased :to form a relatively stiff 'folded portion adapted to ',.be inserted into the envelope throught-he slot in the top flap with the bend' said folded portion iirst, said folded portion being glued to be secured to the inside of said envelope, and a second securing strip ,passing through the slots in the side-flaps, its

ends being pasted to the inside of the envelope.

2.V In an envelope as set forth Vin claim 1, in which the free end of said folded portion is not glued andis adapted to manipulate said strip therewith When the end of the saine is passed through the slot in thetopi'lap.

3. "In an envelope as set forth in claim 1, a base ring strip arranged in a transverse inanner across'the'back of the envelope and across vthe ends of the sealed flaps, passing through ltwo vertical slots in the side flaps to the inside of the envelope, the ends of tliesaine being secured tothe inside of saidflaps, said securing strip crossing said base ring strip and 'being pasted thereon in the operation of sealing the envelope. y

Signed at Roebling,'in the county of Burlington and State of NeW Jersey, this 27th day of May, A. D. 1925, and -at Budapest, Hungary, July 23rd, 1925, respectively.

ALEXANDER SZARKA. ALEXANDER PALFY. 

